


Puppy Love

by ggtwrites (thewritingsofahydrangea)



Series: Magical SF9 [2]
Category: SF9 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Werewolf!Youngbin, Werewolves, magical au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-28 06:50:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16718425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewritingsofahydrangea/pseuds/ggtwrites
Summary: Your neighbor has a secret, and you’re determined to prove it.





	Puppy Love

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was fun to write and got longer than I had originally intended, it was nice how the words flowed out as I was writing.

“One of the guys in my apartment secretly has a dog,” you told your friend, breaking the calm and quiet atmosphere of the cafe with your proclamation.

“What?” She asked, taken aback by the sudden change in topic. Her gaze snapping up from her coffee to your eyes.

Holding her gaze, your eyes steady, you replied, “In my apartment complex there’s this guy. And he secretly has a dog in his apartment.”

She continued to look at you, curiosity written across her features. “I thought that your apartment complex didn’t allow pets.”

“It doesn’t,” you explained with a shrug, “that’s why I said that he  _ secretly  _ has a dog. He doesn’t want anyone to know, but I’m sure of it.”

Your friend raised an eyebrow. She leaned forward, putting an elbow on the table between you as she asked, “How do you know he has a dog?”

“Well,” you explained, “every time I see him, he’s got black hair on his clothes!”

“Is that all the evidence you have?” Your friend asked you skeptically, her eyebrow still raised. 

“Well, yes.” You admitted, “But I’m sure of it.” You put your hand firmly down on table as you spoke, emphasizing your point.

“...How do you know those aren’t his hairs?” Her eyebrow was no longer raised but her eyes were questioning as she looked at you.

You weren’t surprised that she had asked this, and already had a response ready. “Because I’ve never seen him with black hair! He keeps dying his hair crazy colors, ones that couldn’t be mistaken for black, and yet he always seems to be covered in black hairs!”

“There could be so many other reasons,” she said with a sigh, “why are you sure it’s because he has a dog?”

“I just am. I can feel it,” you said sincerely. “And,” you added, “I’m going to prove it.”

\---

The very next day you put your first plan into action. It was a simple plan, but one that you hoped might at least be a good start. You left your apartment and started walking down the hall.

“Oh? Y/N? Hi!” At the sound of an excited voice behind you, you turned to see Youngbin coming up to you, a wide grin on his face and his eyes curving as if to mirror his smile. His hair had changed color from the last time you’d seen it, and the current color was a brilliant mint green that seemed too bright to be real.

This was the perfect opportunity to set your plan into action you thought as you returned his bright smile with one of your own, although yours was not quite as bright. “Oh, Youngbin, it’s nice to see you.”

If you hadn’t seen it with your own eyes you wouldn’t have believed it but his smile brightened at your words, the combined brightness from his hair and his smile almost blinding you. “It’s nice to see you too!” He replied happily. “How are you?”

“I’m good,” you said simply, “how about you?”

He kept smiling as he responded, “I’m great! Have you been outside today? It’s so nice out!”

“Not today, I’ve been inside working on some things. What have you been up to?” You asked, turning the conversation towards him, hoping it would lead you towards the information you were seeking.

Youngbin excitedly launched into a detailed account of his day so far. You weren’t entirely sure why, but he seemed to really want to tell you about his day. The entire time he talked he had a smile on his face, although it was a little more subdued than when he had greeted you as he was talking so much. 

As time passed you felt a question building in your mind, but there hadn’t been a good time to ask it yet. When you couldn’t hold it in any longer you blurted it out, surprising your neighbor who was currently mid-sentence. “Do you have any pets?”

Tilting his head to the side, his smile lessened a little with confusion. “No. I wish I could, but since pets aren’t allowed here I can’t have one. Maybe someday though, having a pet would be nice. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, I was just curious.” You said with a shrug. “Well, I should get back to my stuff. See you later.” And with that you waved and continued down the hall has you had been before you were stopped.

“Bye!” Youngbin called after you cheerfully with a wave of his hand. “I’ll see you soon!”

\---

The next scheme in your attempts involved no direct interaction with Youngbin, but rather observation. That wasn’t to say you didn’t talk to him during your plans, but it wasn’t part of your plans. He seemed to like talking, as whenever he passed you in the hallways he stopped and said hello, a bright smile on his face. And often he asked you how your day was going as well. Unless he was in a rush he made time to chat as well, excitedly bouncing from topic to topic. While you didn’t exactly mind talking to him, it did cut into your investigation time.

Your plan was to simply walk past his apartment and see if you noticed anything suspicious. The difficult part of this plan was making sure that you didn’t pass by too frequently that he might notice something odd about your behavior.

Hoping to hear a dog bark or scuffling of tiny feet you always listened intently when you passed his apartment, but you rarely heard anything more than soft music coming from behind his door. 

Once, as you were on one of your nonchalant walks past his apartment you heard a loud noise, but when you paused to listen more closely you realized it was simply some people, most likely his friends. They seemed to be arguing about something, given their raised voices and the sharp edges to the words that you couldn’t quite make out.

Just as you had passed the apartment you ran into Youngbin. The gears in your brain slowly tried to comprehend. There were people in his apartment, and yet here he was. Then you noticed the grocery bags filled with an assortment of snack foods in his hands, and the situation started to make more sense.

“Hey Y/N!” He said cheerfully, his usual smile bright on his face.

“Hey,” you said in return, “how are you?”

“I’m great! Just got back from a snack run. You’d be amazed how much my friends can eat,” he sighed and shook his head, his smile becoming a frown momentarily. But then like flipping a switch his eyes lit up and his smile was back. “We were just about to start a movie, do you want to join us?”

“Thanks, but I’m-” you started to say, not wanting to spend time with your secret dog suspect, but then you stopped. This might be the perfect change to see inside his apartment. It would be foolish to let this opportunity slip away. “I mean-”

But at that moment the door to his apartment opened. You stopped, turning your head to look towards the door, and Youngbin did the same. A man poked his head out the door, looking down the hallway. Like Youngbin, his hair was dyed an unnatural color, but in his case it was a soft reddish pink. His eyes landed on you and Youngbin with interest. “I thought I heard your voice, Youngbin, what are you doing chatting out in the hallway?”

“I was just saying hi to my neighbor, Y/N. We passed by each other on my way back.” He held up the bags of snacks before turning back to you. “Y/N, this is Jaeyoon.”

The man whose name was Jaeyoon waved, a charming smile on his face. Just as he opened his mouth to speak another man poked his head out the door. This one had dark brown hair, much more natural than that of his friends, and he seemed to be a bit taller than either of them.

“Umm,” he said his voice and eyes giving off an air of slight panic. “I think we need to pick the movie now. Before things get out of hand. Well more out of hand. Things are already getting out of hand.”

Youngbin looked at both the men standing there next to his door and nodded. “Okay, I’ll be in there in just a minute.” He turned to you and said with a slight pout and disappointed eyes, “It sounds like you’re busy, so I guess we’ll have to see if you can join us for a movie another night. But right now I need to handle whatever is going on in there before it gets any worse so I’ll see you later!”

And with that all three of them disappeared into the apartment, leaving you in the hallway. You stood there, processing what had just happened. Such a perfect opportunity, gone. However, you weren’t about to let this setback stop you, soon enough you’d find your next plan.

\---

While you were considering options for your next plot it came time for your monthly game night. On these nights you gathered with a few of your neighbors to play whatever games your group felt like playing that night. You had gathered up some of your favorite games and headed over, excited to see which games would be decided on for that night.

You knocked on the door of the apartment that was hosting the game night, and the owner of said apartment opened the door, smiling when she saw your face. “Oh hey Y/N!” She said excitedly, “I’m glad you could make it, come on in!”

As you entered, you were greeted by the voices of all the usual game night participants, who all greeted you in some way or another. However, there was one face that was new to game night, although not new to you. Sitting on the floor as he admired the wide array of games placed on the coffee table was none other than your secret dog suspect, Youngbin.

He looked up, and as soon as he saw your face his eyes lit up and a smile spread across his face. Waving happily, he gestured you to sit next to him. Everyone else had gone back to their conversations from before you entered so you shrugged and after you had added your games to the pile on the coffee table, you plopped down next to him.

“It’s good to see you Y/N!” Youngbin said happily, turning from the game pile to look directly at you. His gaze was soft yet intense, and you were trapped, unable to look away. A strange feeling welled up in your stomach and you tried to look away, but couldn’t. He smile grew wider and his turned into crescents, giving you a break from his gaze.

“It’s good to see you too.” You muttered, looking down at the floor. You felt an awkwardness in the air, like a haze surrounding you. Fiddling with your hands you attempted to think of something to say to lighten the air, but than a friend of yours called from across the room. Silently thanking your friend, you moved over to where she was sitting, giving a small smile and wave to Youngbin as you sat down next to her.

Your wave was given a slight pout in response, but soon enough Youngbin was happily chatting away with the person sitting next to him and you were able to focus on your friend without having those sad eyes of his turned in your direction.

You had been chatting with your friend for only a few minutes when the host of the game night called for everyone’s attention so the games could begin. The first game was one of your favorites, and in fact you had brought the cards for it: Uno with house rules. Games like this were one of the few places where your competitive nature was readily apparent, as you aggressively played the game with the intent to win.

Slapping down card after card you were a force to be reckoned with, and as usual you won or came close to winning many rounds. As the game went on you glanced over at Youngbin now and then, curious to see how the newcomer to game night was doing. It seemed that Uno was not his game, every time you looked over he had a large hand of cards. However, this didn’t seem to bother him and he had a wide grin on his face. He even kept his smile on his face when he was forced to draw 16, something that had caused many an Uno player to grumble. Instead, he laughed good naturedly as he counted out his cards.

After Uno another game was picked, followed by another, and as the evening went on and the group switched from game to game you found yourself next to Youngbin. Moving spots was quite normal for your group’s game nights so it wasn’t a surprise, but you weren’t quite sure how to feel about it.

Youngbin beamed at you as soon he noticed you sitting next to him, his eyes once again turning into crescents.

You smiled in return, although you were pretty sure your smile was nowhere near as bright as his. “So how’s your first game night experience been going?”

“It’s been fun! I haven’t played some of these games before and I liked learning them! Although,” he added with a slightly grumpy expression, “I wish I could win a little more often.”

“Most people don’t win much their first few times playing a game, it can take time to learn how to really play. I’m sure you can get better, and I could give you some tips when we start the next game.” You gave him an encouraging smile and a pat on his arm. He may have been your secret dog suspect but you knew how frustrating it could be to not win a game, much less several games.

After saying this you turned to someone a few spots down you had asked you a question. Next to you Youngbin stiffened and his cheeks reddened, his eyes growing wide. For a moment he sat there with his mouth open, a soft look slowly lighting up his features. You however saw none of this, and none else did either, all absorbed in their own conversations.

Youngbin shook his head, taking a moment to recover. He started to open his mouth to say something to you, but just then someone started up the next game so he closed his mouth and listened to the person explaining the rules.

A few more games followed before the game night was wrapped up, and while you were focused on winning, next to you Youngbin was far from focused and managed to do worse than he had with the previous games. While he was still good natured about his losses he kept giving you sad eyes for a moment when he would have an especially bad loss. He’d laugh right after so there wasn’t much weight to his eyes, and his laugh was infectious.

Much to your displeasure given his status on your mind, you found yourself thinking his reactions were cute. You tried to push this thought out of your mind and put all your attention into the games, but the thought stayed there in the back or your mind.

At the end of the night you stood up with a contented sigh. You had won a good number of games and overall enjoyed your night. Gathering up your games you waved to your friends and headed out, one of the first to leave. Part of you wanted to stay but your determination to keep Youngbin as your secret dog suspect and nothing else moved you back to your apartment.

\---

Sighing you slumped against the elevator wall. Today, had been a long day. You wearily pushed the button for your floor. As the door was sliding close a voice called out, “Wait!” and arm stuck itself into the elevator, blocking the door from closing.

Following the arm was a group of guys breathing heavily. As they came to a stop inside the elevator they all turned towards each other, giving you a view of only their backs. You raised an eyebrow, “You do know there’s more than one elevator right? And that they run pretty frequently?”

“Y/N?” A familiar voice asked, and from the far side of the group a mint green head leaned in your direction. Youngbin smiled when he saw you and waved, causing the rest of the group to look at you as well. Now that they were turned in your direction, you recognized two of them from that time you’d met him outside his apartment, but the rest were new faces to you.

You gave Youngbin a small smile and waved at the group as you stood in your spot slumped against the wall. “Oh, hey.”

One of the guys moved closer, the pink one from before, Jaeyoon you believed, and the rest followed until there was a loose quarter circle around your spot along the wall, except for Youngbin who was still standing in the same spot. “It’s nice to see you again Y/N,” Jaeyoon said as Youngbin pushed his way closer, flashing a pouting look towards his pink haired friend.

“Here,” Youngbin said, “let me introduce you to everyone, I know you met Jaeyoon before, and you’ve seen Rowoon,” he pointed towards the tallest of the group. “The other two are Inseong,” he said was pointed towards a man with brown hair, “and Chani.” Another man with black hair. Each nodded as Youngbin said their name, and you nodded in return. “And guys,” he said, turning towards the group, “this is Y/N.”

You gave a small smile and a wave, but before you had time to say anything you were immersed in a flow of conversation. “It’s nice to meet you, Y/N!” Inseong said with a smile.

“Yeah!” Chani agreed, “Youngbin’s told us about you but it’s nice to meet you for ourselves!”

Blinking in surprise you turned to Youngbin, an eyebrow raising, “You’ve told them about me?”

Youngbin’s eyes widened and then he looked away for a moment, “Um, well, not really. I just mentioned a little. Since I see you now and then. And I was telling them about game night.” He turned back, shooting a look at Chani that you couldn’t quite interpret. “It’s nothing.”

Too tired to question him more you shrugged. And then the elevator dinged, it’s door opening. All of you spilled out into the hallway, with you leaving last, dragging your feet as you stepped out of the elevator.

From the elevator your apartment was in the opposite direction from Youngbin’s so you waved to the group, “I need to get home, but it was nice to meet you all.” They all waved it return and gave a chorus of, “It was nice to meet you too!” with Youngbin adding, “I hope you have a good rest of your day!” 

You smiled at him, “You too.” And then turned and walked down the hallway, the noisy chatter of the group fading as you arrived at your apartment, and then it was gone as you closed the door, happy to be home for the day.

\---

While it seemed you had been spending more time with Youngbin recently, it felt like you were no closer to finding proof that would reveal his secret dog than you had when you first came up with your theory. And so you came up with a new plan, you that you hoped would get you into his apartment so you could prove once and for all that he really did have a dog in his apartment.

You knocked on the door of Youngbin’s apartment and a few moments later the door swung open. When your mint haired neighbor’s eyes met yours his eyes curved into crescents and he grinned at you. “Y/N!” He said happily.

“Hi Youngbin!” It was hard not to smile back when he was practically beaming at you, and you so found yourself returning his grin with one of your own. “I have a question for you!”

“Oh?” He asked, his head tilting slightly, a big smile still on his face.

“Well you see,” you began, “my vacuum broke and I haven’t had time to fix it, so I was wondering if I could yours. Would that be okay?” You tried your best to smile warmly, hoping that this plan would succeed. And your vacuum really was broken, so it seemed like a good plan.

However, instead of smiling and inviting you in as you had thought he would, he stood in the frame of his door, his eyes widening. “I wish I could let you borrow it, but… Um…” Youngbin trailed off looked down at the floor, seeming to find it very interesting all of a sudden. “Uh…” He was hiding something, you could feel it.

“My friend is borrowing it! And it’ll probably be a while before I get it back!” He said suddenly, making you take a step back. “Oh, sorry!” He looked at you, concern creeping into his eyes. “I didn’t mean to startle you! It just took me a moment to remember why I couldn’t let you borrow it!”

You shook your head and sighed, “It’s fine.”

Youngbin brightened up again, “Okay! I’m glad. I’d feel bad if I scared you or anything.”

The two of you stood there awkwardly for a moment, both of you trying to figure out what to say next.

Breaking the silence, he asked, “So how is your day going?”

The sincerity in his voice surprised you, he sounded like he really wanted to know. “Eh, it was alright,” you said with a shrug, “nothing that interesting. Just work and trying to get my apartment a little cleaner.” You looked into his eyes, “How about you?”

“About the same as yours, nothing interesting. But it’s nice to get to talk to you!” He smiled, and you smiled back, but you weren’t sure what he why he’d say that. Maybe he’d caught on to your suspicions and was trying to throw you off his trail.

“Um, thanks. It’s, uh, nice to talk to you too.” You said, your words trailing off. This would be so much less awkward if he wasn’t your secret dog suspect, you’d be a lot less suspicious of him if it wasn’t for that.

Youngbin smiled at you again, the warmth almost radiating off him. Wow, this guy could really smile. “I’m glad you think so! We should talk more often.”

You wracked your brain, trying to think of something you could say that would let you see inside his apartment. Standing here talking was getting you nowhere. Well, maybe it was nice to talk to him like this, but you had a mission. “If you want to keep talking maybe we should do it somewhere other than the hallway?” You asked him with a smile.

His eyes lit up, and then the light faded and he frowned. “I wish I could, but I just remembered I’m supposed to go meet up with my friends soon. Sorry, but maybe another time. Maybe I could give you my number, and you could text me when you’re free.” His looked at you, his eyes hopeful.

As you’d gotten to know Youngbin better, you’d come to realize how powerful his eyes could be. When he looked at you like he was now, it was so hard to not give him everything he wanted. You couldn’t understand it, and this lack of understanding frustrated you. “Sorry, I just remembered something I need to go do, and I really should leave right now. Bye.”

And with that you turned away from him and made your way back to your apartment, his, “Bye!” calling out to you as marched down the hallway. At this rate, it felt like you were never going to prove his secret dog.

\---

A few days after your latest failed secret dog proof plot you found yourself at a local cafe. You were peacefully sipping your drink, your legs tucked into your stool as you watched the rain falling outside. Today was a day off for yourself from worrying about Youngbin, today was about you. The frustration was getting to you, and today had seemed like the perfect day to rest, the rain filling you with a sense of calm.

But the peacefulness was broken as a loud group of voices entered the cafe. Turning around to see who was making such a racket you were greeted by the sight of Youngbin and some of his group of friends.

Turning back around swiftly you tried to pretend you hadn’t seen them. Maybe if you just looked out the window and tried to fade into just another person in the cafe you could be left alone. Today was about you, not trying to figure out if Youngbin was hiding a dog in his apartment. And even if you maybe thought he was nice, his was your suspect first.

It seemed however, that you would not get your day to yourself. “Y/N? Is that you?” You turned around to see Youngbin smiling in front of you, his friends trailing behind him.

You did your best to smile, but it felt a little forced, although his smile made it feel a little more genuine. “Oh hey, fancy seeing you guys here.” You said, waving to the group.

Soon you were surrounded on both sides by the group, as they had taken the stools on either side of you. One of the them, Inseong you believed, took the stool closest to yours, smiling at you. “It’s nice to see you again, Y/N/”

“Yeah,” Jaeyoon said from the stool next to him, “we didn’t get to talk to you much in the elevator, and Youngbin’s been saying that he wishes he could see you more.” He turned and looked at Youngbin who was sitting a few stools down from you on your other side with a smile. Closer to you on that side sat Rowoon and someone who you had yet to meet.

Youngbin huffed and turned away, blocking your view from his face, which was currently redder than it had been moments before. “Yeah, whatever.”

Before you had time to question his odd behavior the conversation had already shifted. Rowoon spoke up, “Y/N, this is Zuho.”

The man sitting next to you nodded, his blond hair shifting as he did. He stuck his hand out and you shook it, as he said, “Nice to meet you.”

“It’s nice to meet you as well.” You said.

You felt a tap on shoulder and turned to the stools on the other side of you and were greeted by the sight of Inseong and Jaeyoon again. “So, tell us Y/N, how did you first come to meet Youngbin?” Inseong asked, his elbow resting on the counter, presumably the one who had tapped your shoulder.

Sighing you thought back, “Well, just in passing. We’d see each other in the apartment complex’s halls and in the elevator now and then. And once in a while we’d say hi, maybe chat a little. That’s about it.”

“Aww,” Jaeyoon said with a frown, “I was hoping for something more interesting.”

You raised an eyebrow at the pink haired man, “I think that’s the normal way that someone meets a neighbor, unless they know each other before moving in, and that wasn’t the case here.”

He sighed, “Yeah, but it would have be fun if something exciting had happened when you two met for the first time.”

Shrugging you took a sip of your drink, and after you had finished you responded, “Life isn’t often as exciting as we’d wish it was, or when it is, it’s in a way that we dislike.”

“Wow, those are some wise words Y/N, it sounds like you might even be as smart as I am.” Inseong chuckled as he said this. He slung an arm around your shoulders as he continued, “It’s good to know I’m not the only one with some brains around here.”

Surprised at the sudden arm around you, you jumped slightly, and it must have shown on your face because Jaeyoon shook his head saying, “Some people don’t like to be touched, Inseong.”

Inseong’s arm instantly vanished from around your shoulders, and he gave you an apologetic smile. Just as he was about to say something another voice piped up from behind you. “What are you guys talking about?” The three of you turned to see Youngbin standing behind you, a slight frown on his face.

Summarizing the whole conversation between the three you Jaeyoon said, “How you and Y/N met is boring, Inseong said Y/N is smart and put his arm around her without asking.”

“Oh?” Youngbin asked, his eyes fixed on Inseong, his frown still on his face. “Is that so?”

Inseong put his hands in the air as you said, “It wasn’t a big deal, I was just surprised, no harm done.”

Nodding Inseong put his hands back down, giving you a thankful smile. “So what brings you over here, Youngbin?”

“Rowoon and Zuho went to go get drinks for themselves so I didn’t have anyone to talk to, and I want to talk to Y/N, she is my neighbor after all, that’s why I came over in the first place.” Youngbin pouted, giving all three of you the puppy eyes you had almost become used to from your mint haired neighbor.

“You could pull a stool over and come join our little group.” Inseong suggested as he leaned over and patted Youngbin’s shoulder.

Youngbin’s eyes brightened and he gave Inseong a smile before nodding. He swiftly had a stool dragged over, changing your line into an awkward lump shape. Jaeyoon and Inseong made sure to include him in the conversation and soon he was back to his usual self, bright smile and all, his pouting completely forgotten.

You talked with Youngbin and his friends for a while longer, with the exact group changing as they went to get drinks or switch who they were talking to, but Youngbin stay close to you the whole time.

Sooner than you had expected it was time for you to leave, and it was a disappointing thought when you realized the time. Without your worries of solving your secret dog mystery it had been nice to chat with Youngbin and his friends. You sighed, “It’s been nice talking to you all but I need to get going.”

At this point it didn’t surprise you at to find Youngbin’s smile turning smaller at your words. “Sorry, I wish I could stay, but I can’t.” Getting up you grabbed your long finished drink cup from the counter. “I’ll see you around soon,” You told Youngbin with a smile.

A chorus of byes came from around you, and a few of them waved as well. Youngbin smiled, but there was a tinge of disappointment in his eyes. “Bye Y/N, get home safe!”

You nodded and gave a wave to everyone as you walked out of the cafe. While not how you had planned to spend your time, it had ended up being nice, you had meant every word you said.

\---

While you had enjoyed your day of rest, you were frustrated by the lack of progress in your quest for proof. And so you called your friend that you had first confided to about your suspicions, asking her to meet up so you could vent your sorrows. 

As soon as she made herself comfortable on your couch you blurted out, “I’m stumped. Nothing I do seems to work. I haven’t been able to find a single piece of evidence. But I don’t want to give up.”

“Why can’t you just admit that your suspicions might have been wrong?” She asked, getting straight to the point.

“But I was so sure! It seemed like the most logical solution.” You insisted.

Your friend sighed, and looked up at the ceiling as she often did when you were stubborn. “It’s okay be to wrong, you know.”

“I’m not!” You protested, indignation entering your voice.

She looked into your eyes and asked, “Why are you so sure of your theory? Why don’t you want to let this go?”

Her intense stare was too much to handle and so you found yourself looking down at your lap, attempting to formulate a reply. “I’m not sure. But I just. I don’t want to be wrong. I guess. And I don’t feel ready to give up.”

“How long has it been since you started trying to prove your suspicions?” She asked gently.

You thought for a moment, thinking back to your first plot, before responding. “I think it’s been a few weeks.”

“And in these few weeks have you found any proof, at all, that he’s secretly hiding a dog in his apartment?”

“Well, no.”

“So why are you insisting on something that you really have no proof of? Why not think about another answer instead of stubbornly holding onto the one you have?” Her words felt harsh, but you knew that she meant well. Of all your friends, she was the best at telling you what you needed to hear, even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear.

Looking down at your hands you let out a sigh. “I don’t know. I guess, I’ve kind of enjoyed this thing. It’s been interesting to think about.”

“Is that the only reason?” Your friend asked, her voice gentle but with a questioning determination.

“I don’t know!” You said, throwing yours hand into the air. “Maybe? Why do you keep asking me? I’m just going to keep telling you that I don’t know, because I don’t!”

“I just want to know if there’s another reason that’s making it hard for you to let go. Maybe it has something to do with the neighbor in question?” As she asked this, her eyes lit up.

“What?” You asked in surprise, “Youngbin? I mean, he’s a nice guy, and he seems happy to see me a lot, and I kinda enjoy talking to him, but he’s my secret dog suspect.”

“Oh? He’s happy to see you a lot, is he?” Your friend grinned, her eyes glinting, “That sounds nice. It sounds like he likes seeing you.”

“I guess he kinda does seem to,” you admitted, “but I feel like we’re getting off track here.”

“No, I think this is exactly what we need to be talking about.” Your friend put her hand over yours, currently in your lap. “You said that you enjoy talking to him, do you think that you might talk to him less once your investigation is over?”

“Well, maybe. I probably wouldn’t see him around as much, since I wouldn’t really have a reason to.” Thinking about seeing less of your excited neighbor made you feel slightly off, but you couldn’t put your finger on exactly what the feeling was.

Your friend looked in your eyes, “Why couldn’t that be the reason?”

“What?”

“I think that part of the reason you won’t let it go, whether you’ll admit it or not, is because you’ll miss the chances your investigation has given you to see your neighbor more. I think, maybe you enjoy talking to him a lot.” Your friend grinned.

Your eyes narrowed as you stared at your friend, “I feel like there’s something else that you’re trying to imply.”

With a shrug of her shoulders she said, “Well, I might be. But we can come back to that later. Why not be friends with him? If you think he likes talking to you, and you like talking to him, why not just talk to him? You don’t have to have a reason besides wanting to talk to him.”

You paused, your thoughts slowing down to consider this new suggestion. “I guess you’re right, at least about talking to him. If I tried it wouldn’t be that hard to get talking to him like I have been. “

“Of course I’m right.” Was your friend’s reply, accompanied by a joking smile. “Now, thinking about the whole situation with this in mind, do you still feel like you can’t accept the possibility of him not hiding a dog?”

“Well,” was started hesitantly, “I guess it does seem kinda unlikely that he is hiding a dog. Between how open and friendly is, and how similar his friends are, and how much they all talk, and the lack of hard evidence, there isn’t much to support my theory. But it still doesn’t explain those blacks hair.” You rested your chin on your hand, thinking hard.

Your friend sighed and put a hand on your shoulder, “It’s okay to not know everything. And maybe if you just enjoy getting to know him the answer will come. Now,” she added with a grin, “Let’s get to the subject of you and Youngbin.”

Tilting your head to the side you looked at your friend in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I might be wrong, but it sounds like from how happy he is to see you that he likes you a lot. And it seems like you certainly like him.”

“And?” You asked, not getting her point.

She shook her head, “Sometimes I forget how oblivious you can be when it comes to yourself. I’m saying that maybe he likes you, in the way where he thinks you’re cute. Which you are, you know.”

A rush of heat came to your cheeks, “I. Well. Um. Uh. I don’t think.” Your mind flashed back to your interactions with Youngbin. Could your friend be right? Pushing the thought away you told your friend, “I think I should start by just being friends with him.”

“That is a good place to start. But let me know if anything else happens.” With a wink your friend stood up, “I’ll leave you to think over all that we’ve talked about. Are we still on to grab coffee next week?”

You nodded and gave your friend a smile and a wave as she grabbed her stuff and left your apartment, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

\---

Taking your friend’s words to heart you stopped worrying about whether or not Youngbin had a dog in his apartment and simply enjoyed being friends with him. This turned out to be very easy to do as he was such a friendly and eager person.

A few months after you had decided to simply be his friend there was a small celebration in your area. It wasn’t a big deal, but you had a heard a rumor that there might be fireworks this year so you were excited to go.

And so you found yourself wandering through the stalls that shops had set up on the streets, admiring the craftsmanship and delicious smells of food. With you were all your friends from your apartment, including Youngbin, his friends, and a few other friends of yours. Being surrounded by people you know made for a cozy atmosphere, and you were thoroughly enjoying yourself.

As the sky began to darken you found yourself walking next to Youngbin, trailing behind the rest of your group. But the peace of the moment talking alone with your friend were soon interrupted by a bright light in the sky and an accompanying boom.

Youngbin froze and made a strange noise, his eyes widening. In concern you turned to him, “Hey are you okay?”

He gulped, looking into the sky, “So, fireworks, huh?” he asked, a slight quaver entering his voice.

“Yeah, didn’t you hear that there were going to be some tonight?” You asked quizzically.

Sighing he muttered, “I guess, I kinda forgot.” It was hard his face fully due to the darkening sky but it almost seemed like his face was a little redder than before.

Suddenly another flash of light lit up the night sky and another boom overwhelmed the noises of the celebration. Youngbin jumped, his eyes wide with alarm. He moved closer to you, until he was almost touching you, well within your personal space.

You backed up a few step, giving him a look of confusion. “Is something wrong, Youngbin? You’re acting kinda strange.”

“It’s nothing,” he said with a laugh, but it turned into a yelp as another firework went off. Once again he moved closer to you, but not enough to for you to feel like he was in your personal space. Noticing the doubt in your eyes he sighed. “The thing is, it’s kinda silly, but well, I don’t like loud noises. And fireworks especially make me nervous.” He looked down at the ground, sighing.

The fireworks starting increasing in quantity until they were almost nonstop, and soon Youngbin was in your personal space again, panic in his eyes. You moved to take a step back but he looked at you with pleading eyes. “Please, let me stay close to you.”

“What? Why?” You asked, very confused and a little flustered as well. This was your first time seeing Youngbin this close, and it made your heart race in a way you weren’t expecting. You had tried to push the thought away, but this close it was hard to deny that you thought he was very handsome, although right now he was also looking quite distressed.

There was a lull in the fireworks, and Youngbin breathed a sigh of relief, but soon they had started back up and he was growing more and more distressed, and suddenly he started speaking very quickly. “The truth is, I like you, Y/N, a lot! And you feel comforting to me, and these fireworks are really getting to me. And I just want a hug from my cute neighbor so I feel more safe okay?!”

As he looked into your eyes and gave you his best puppy eyes, the ones that had become so endearing to you. You found yourself unable to look away as your face heated up as your brain processed what he had said. As you looked into those eyes, you were hit with a realization. “I think, I like you too. And a hug sounds like something I could mange.”

Despite the fireworks still blasting overhead Youngbin’s eyes curved up and he gave you that smile of his you had grown to enjoy so much. He moved closer, and held you in his arms. While it might have looked like he was comforting you to someone on the outside, it was like you were a living teddy bear for him in that moment.

Once it seemed like the fireworks were done for good, the two of you set off to find your group of friends. As you walked, the two of you discussed what this new development meant, and much calmer now but definitely blushing, Youngbin had asked you to be his girlfriend. And you had very happily said yes, blushing almost as much as him.

When you met up with your friends there was a clamoring of voices at the sight of the two of you holding hands. When Youngbin announced that the two of you were now dating, the clamoring didn’t die down as he had hoped but instead got louder. Off to the side, your friend who you had talked to about him gave you a smirk, to which you responded with an eye roll.

\---

One day, a few months into dating Youngbin, he called you over to his apartment. When he opened the door he looked nervous, running his fingers through his hair which was now dyed purple. And while he was happy to see you, his nervousness didn’t go away as he welcomed you in.

This wasn’t the first time you had been over to his apartment, and as you had come to accept, there was no dog. However, there were little black hairs here and there that you had never been able to figure out the source of, and you hadn’t asked him about them yet.

You slipped your shoes off and padded over to his couch, as he was gesturing for you to sit there. He sat in a chair opposite to you, a serious look on his face.

“Y/N,” he began, “there’s something I need to tell you.” He breathed deeply and looked into your eyes, and when he saw that you were starting steadily back at him he continued. “This is going to sound strange, and I know it’ll be hard for you to believe, but, well…” He trailed off. You waited patiently as he struggled to get out what he wanted to say.

“I’m a werewolf.” He said finally, his voice etched with nervousness and his body shaking. And then he looked at you, still trembling, waiting for your response.

Blinking slowly, you looked at him, your sweet and loveable boyfriend, your brain working to try and understand what he had just said. “A werewolf?”

“Yes. I really am. I’m not joking, I promise.” He looked at you, those puppy eyes pleading with you to believe him.

And despite how crazy his claim, you found that you did, in fact, believe him. Maybe it was the sincerity in his eyes, maybe it was how nervous he had been to tell you, maybe it was because he had been honest with you throughout your relationship, or maybe it was a mix of all of those, but you found yourself telling him, “I believe you.”

Suddenly you found yourself wrapped in Youngbin’s arms, his chin resting on your shoulder. “Thank you, Y/N, thank you so much.” He whispered into your hair, his body still trembling slightly. You sat there, simply holding each other, until he moved to sit beside you. “Do you have any questions? About me being a werewolf I mean.”

You thought carefully, before asking him, “Would it be safe for me to watch you transform?”

Youngbin tilted his head to the side, a questioning look in his eyes, “Why would you want to see that?”

“Well, if you’re a werewolf I want to see it with my own two eyes. I already believe you, and it does explain some things, but I still want to see.” You explained.

Tilting his head in the other direction Youngbin thought for a moment. “It should be safe. Once I transformed when Inseong was over, and he said I acted more like a dog than a wolf. And I can take precautions, to make sure you’re safe. If you’re really sure.” As he added that last bit he looked at you with concerned eyes.

Nodding you said, “I’m sure.”

He sighed, not completely happy with the idea but willing to do it for you. “Okay then, the next full moon is a week from now. Meet me here in the afternoon so we have time to get ready.”

And so, the following week you were over at Youngbin’s apartment once again. He ushered you inside and went over all the safety precautions he had put in place for you. Sooner than either of you was really ready for, the sun was setting and the moon starting to rise.

You stood in a corner, watching closely as he stood in the front of his window in only a t-shirt and shorts. The moonlight began to shine in and his body started to ripple with black fur. He doubled over, and almost before you knew what was happening, there was a large black wolf standing in the place where your boyfriend had been moments before.

The wolf turned towards you, and you were met with deep brown eyes, more intelligent than you expected to see from an animal. While this creature was foreign to you, there was something about those eyes that reminded you that this was Youngbin.

“This explains all those black hairs.” You murmured to yourself. The wolf’s ears perked up at the sound of your voice, and it slowly made its way over to you. Carefully holding out a hand, ready to pull it back at a moment’s notice, you waited for the wolf to come closer.

He sniffed your hand, and then nuzzled it, giving a happy bark. Soon you were having to defend yourself from sloppy wolf kisses as Youngbin tried to lick your face. “Okay,” you laughed, “how about you wait until you’re human again to kiss me, you’re a little slobbery for my tastes right now.”

Backing away, Youngbin sat a few feet from you. While it was harder to read his face as a wolf, he almost seemed to be radiating contentment. You moved from over to the couch, and patted the spot next to you. The wolf hopped up and settled next to you.

Gazing at his thick black fur, you asked, “Could I pet you? Would that be weird? Or rude? This whole thing is weird.” You laughed at yourself, “I guess if nothing else I can have a dog once a month this way.”

In answer to your question, Youngbin moved his head onto your lap, looking up at you. Slowly moving your hand, you gently stroked his head. Soon you found you couldn’t stop, the motion and feeling of petting him soothing you, but it turned out to be too soothing, and you fell asleep.

Waking up the next morning you found yourself still on Youngbin’s couch, but with a blanket covering you and a pillow under your head. Sitting up slowly you stretched, and looking around saw Youngbin in the kitchen. “Good morning.” You said with a loud yawn, and he turned towards you.

He smiled, “Good morning, Y/N. I was just about to get us some breakfast, is there anything in particular you want?”

“What are you going to eat?” You asked out of curiosity.

Laughing softly he lifted up a package from the counter, “Bacon, and lots of it. It’s the best thing for me after a full moon.”

Your thoughts flashed back to the night before, “I can imagine, it must take a lot out of you to change like that.”

“You have no idea.” He laughed, “So, what’ll be for you this morning, dear Y/N?”

Blushing at the affection in his voice it took a moment for you to regain your composure and reply. “I’ll take some bacon too, if that’s alright. And maybe some scrambled eggs too?”

He nodded, “I can certainly do that for you.”

Sighing you laid back down. You were dating a werewolf, and he was one of the sweetest people you had ever met.


End file.
